Final Report - Asian Development Bank

14
TA 4721-PRC: Preparing the Shaanxi-Qinling Mountains Integrated Ecosystem Management Project
Final Report Appendix 7
d. Qinling Botanic Garden Proposal – Land Access Issues
63. QBG has no land user rights in the Project Area other than an approval to proceed with the
Project and project area. . For the ex-situ land requirements QBG needs to gain the land user rights
either through acquisition, renting or shareholder arrangement according to the Land Management Act
of PRC. Most of the land is currently owned by the local community. County and Township
government will be important stakeholders in terms of land acquisition, resettlement and other
government supported natural resources and community development activities. For operating in the
QBCDA zone any QBG plans involving Louguantai Forestry Farm land requires their mutual
agreement.
64. QBG is eligible as a government unit to raise a loan for botanic garden construction. QBG is
able to set up a company or restructure the current company to complete its commercialization to
meet the loan management and repayment requirements. QBG will be responsible for construction
and operation of the Qinling Botanic Garden itself and will take responsibility of resettling villagers in
Dianzhen village to meet government of PRC resettlement requirements.
65. The Qinling Botanic Garden (QBG) will use 4039.5 mu (269.3 ha) of collective owned rural
land from Dianzhen village for development under this project. Two approaches have been proposed
to access land use rights. These include (i) land acquisition amounting to 293.63mu (19.64 ha), and
(ii) a land shareholding agreement for 3,746 mu (249.66 ha) where current land use right holders while
gain shares on the QBG enterprise.
66. Within the Project area, there is rural cropping land, other rural agricultural land, rural idle
land, rural residential land and rural infrastructure construction land – the rights for all land types are
held by Dianzhen village. Currently the proposed use of land has no legal status and is contra to local
regulations 11 . The following section outlines these issues and recommends a series of actions to be
undertaken before any processing of the QBG project loan.
I. Land Acquisition (293.63 mu)
67. A total of 293.63 mu of land will be acquired and used for the purpose of constructing
buildings or infrastructure. There are two principal regulations that govern changing land use types
under the PRC legislation system. “Land Management Law of PRC” -- promulgated by the Standing
Committee of the People’s Congress in year 1982, and amended in the year 2004. “Implementation
Rules of Land Management Law of the PRC” -- promulgated in 1998 by the State Council. Apart from
these two regulations, there are other detailed rules and instructions issued by the Land Ministry and
State Council to enforce the regulations. Provincial People’s Congress in Shaanxi has promulgated
local regulations to enforce the law. The relevant regulations are summarized in Methods of
Implementing the Land Management Act of PRC in Shaanxi Province dated January 2007.
68. The Qinling Botanic Garden will need to change land use on existing agricultural land for
construction purposes under their land acquisition. The Jixian Township Basic Farming Land
Protection Plan Map indicates that QBG will acquire about 1,500 mu (100 hectares) of basic farming
land for construction and other purposes. It will also acquire current rural residential land and other
agricultural land.
Next steps and Approvals
� QBG will provide a land use pre-checking report from a land use management
authority as required by the law to confirm: (i) basic farming land has been relocated
to another location. (ii) land use application of QBG is consistent with the government
land use plan and regulation, (iii) there is a change of agricultural land quotas for
QBG.
� QBG will acquire 293.63 mu (19.57 ha) of land. It will be required to get approval for
acquisition of land after the project feasibility study is approved by SPG. Then the
resettlement plan will be implemented
11 The PPTA has been advised that this constraint does not necessarily apply to the QBG and that an official
document to this effect will be provided to ADB.